| Page : 1 |
| Current Issue March - April 2012 |
| |
| The Joy of Baisakhi |
|
| |
It’s that time of the year again,
where the streets of Punjab are full
of festivities and joy. This month, we
celebrate the festival of Baisakhi with
great fervour and a spirit of spreading
love and happiness.
Baisakhi (or Vaisakhi) is one of the
most important festivals of the Sikhs,
and is celebrated not only in Punjab,
but also around the world where the
people of the state have traveled.
For the large farming community of
Punjab, Baisakhi marks the beginning
of the harvest season, where the rabi
crop will finally be gathered from the
fields. This is a day of feasting and
merriment before the tiring but fruitful
time ahead.
The festival also holds tremendous
religious significance. Sikhs celebrate
Vaisakhi as the day of the formation of
the Khalsa (the pure one). It is on this
day in 1699 that Guru Gobind Singh,
the tenth Sikh Guru, established the
Khalsa and declared that all human
beings are equal. Sikhism, in its present
form, owes its existence to this event.
The festival also marks the beginning of
the new Punjabi year.
Baisakhi falls on the first day of the
month of Vaisakh according to the
Nanakshahi, or Sikh Calendar. According
to the English calendar, the date is
April 13 every year, and April 14 once
every 36 years. The people of Punjab
celebrate the festival with exuberance
and devotion. Prayer services are
organized in Gurdwaras, many take
bath in the holy river, and congregates
receive specially prepared ‘kara prasad’
or sweetened
semolina. This is
followed by langar,
or community
lunch.
Later, a lively and
vibrant procession
moves through the
city. Men, women
and children step
out of their homes;
sing, dance and
make merry. The
bhangra and gidda
dances add colour
to the occasion. The
people thank god
for the harvest, and pray for good times
ahead.
|
|
|
| |
| April Fools 'Day or All Fools' Day |
| |
Every year, April Fools' Day is
celebrated in different countries
around the world on April 1st. The
day is celebrated by good-humoured
or otherwise funny jokes and pranks
on friends, family members, teachers,
neighbours, work
colleagues, etc.
Did you
know that
the New
Year began
on the 1st of
April till the
16th century?
The history of
April Fools’ Day
or All Fools’ Day
is uncertain, but the earliest recorded
association between April 1st and
foolishness can be found in Chaucer’s
Canterbury Tales in 1392. However,
the current thinking is that it began
around 1582 in France with the
reform of the calendar under Charles
IX when the Gregorian Calendar
was introduced, and New Year's Day
was moved from March 25th -
April 1st (new year's week) to
January 1st. Communication
travelled slowly in those
days and some people
were only informed of
the change several years
later. Still others, who were
more rebellious refused to
acknowledge the change
and continued to celebrate
on the last day of the former
celebration, which was April 1st.
These people were labelled ‘fools’
by the general populace, and
were subjected to ridicule and sent
on ‘fool errands’. They were sent
invitations to nonexistent parties
and had other practical jokes played
upon them.
This harassment evolved over
time and a custom of prank playing
continues on the first day of April.
This tradition eventually spread
elsewhere to other countries, and
April Fools’ Day has taken on an
international flavour with each
country celebrating the day in its
own way. In France, people who are
fooled on April 1st are called ‘Poisson
d'Avril’, which literally means the
‘April Fish’. One common joke is to
hook a cardboard fish to the back of
a person.
On this day, if the victim falls prey
to the intention of the trickster,
he or she is called an ‘April Fool’.
But, in some countries including
South Africa, United Kingdom and
Australia, the hoaxes and jokes are
allowed only before noon time.
And, if someone continues with this
practice even after noon hours, he or
she too is addressed as an ‘April Fool’.
Over the years, India too has
started celebrating the widely known
April Fools’ Day. This day is more
popular with the youth of India
including kids, college-goers and
young professionals. The Indian kids
usually point out to something which
is not present at that point of time in
that place to draw the attention of
the victim. When the victim fails to
realize the motive and starts looking
for the object, the trickster yells,
“April Fool!” The grown-ups also do
these things but strictly with their
close friends and work colleagues
only. Many people prefer to send
April Fools’ Day cards to their friends
and relatives. Some even like to buy
gifts specially made for this day.
So, no matter where you happen to
be in the world on April 1st, don't be
surprised or upset if someone pulls a
playful prank on you.
|
| |
| Recent happenings at AlphaOne |
| |
|
| |
|
|
